International Development (Brandt Report)

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 11:38 am on 12 December 1980.

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Photo of Mr Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler Mr Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler , North West Norfolk 11:38, 12 December 1980

I apologise. I am not wearing my spectacles today, so I am not doing very well with my quotations.

It confirmed that the first priority, which is obviously right, is that our country must adjust to the higher cost of oil and bring inflation under control. We could agree with that if it was understood that it is impossible to bring inflation under control without reference to our performance in international markets, the balance of trade and various other international factors that are beyond our control.

I am glad that my hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development is present. Some hon. Members had high hopes that Britain's contribution to the United Nations special session in August this year would be constructive, for the reasons that I have given. If one disagrees with the proposals, one should put forward counter-proposals for the solution of the problems defined by Brandt.

In his speech on 28 August, the Minister said that the Government were in favour of encouraging investment, technology, training, management and expertise. He said: It is for developing countries to create or maintain conditions to attract private external capital. We cannot disagree with that. He then said: The free market lies at the basis of our economic beliefs. It is the foundation of our economic beliefs, domestic and foreign. I take issue with the Government here. It is perfectly right for us to carry out an exercise in sensible domestic bookkeeping and to reintroduce a greater degree of market force into our domestic economy, but for us to expect the whole world to follow our example is unrealistic in the extreme. We have to accept that the world contains countries that do not share this interest in the market economy. There are planned economies and poor country economies where there is not sufficient cash to finance anything and where management is poor.

I hope that we can begin to understand that the domestic bookkeeping exercise that we are carrying out at present, in a period of rapid adjustment to changing world conditions, is painful but perhaps can be accepted. But the possibility that the rest of the world can only resolve its major problems in the same way is not acceptable. If there is an argument for monetarist policies at home, there is probably a bigger argument than ever before in the last 30 years for Keynesian policies abroad. My right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Hexham (Mr. Rippon) and other hon. Members referred to that in their speeches.

On 11 November, my hon. Friend the Minister for Overseas Development received a delegation from the various aid agencies in this country. In their memorandum they said—and this is the central point that I am trying to get across: As agencies we do not agree with the whole of the Brandt Report and we believe important points have been omitted from it, or underestimated in it—not least that real aid to people in need is not to be equated with the Governments of those people. Nonetheless, Britain, with its colonial past and its utter dependence upon trading, ought to be taking the lead presented by Brandt, making the issues of the Third World central to Government strategy. The realisation that those issues are not central to the Goverment's present strategy causes me great concern.

It is incumbent on the Government to respond more positively to the Brandt report and to understand that domestic and overseas policies interact and that Britain has a major role to play in the evolution of an expanding world economy. The Government must ensure that the issues are properly debated in the Cabinet, so that Treasury Ministers can be educated to the simple fact that their capacity to run the domestic economy requires a deeper appreciation of the fact that those in the developing world must have money if they are to be customers for the United Kingdom. If my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Oxon (Mr. Hurd), the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, understands the issues, perhaps he will organise two seminars—one for Treasury Ministers and the other for Treasury officials.

I should like the Government to be represented at the summit at the highest level. I hope that we shall be told that if we are invited the Prime Minister will lead our delegation, and I hope that she will be accompanied by representatives of the Department of Trade, the Overseas Development Administration and the Treasury. It is important that there is much greater interdepartmental thinking on these subjects at the highest level.

I should like to know that the Government will play a leading part in constructive discussions to find practical solutions to the problems that are so well defined by the Brandt report. I urge the Government to reconsider their significant cutting of the aid programme. Many hon. Members have pointed out that two-thirds of our aid programme comes back to this country in the form of purchases of goods and services. On this year's figure of about £900 million aid, the net cost to us is only £300 million, which is a small price to pay for the undoubted good will that results to other British industries from our relations with the countries of the developing world.